The European Commission is asking for guarantees that third countries do not have “illegal” access to citizens’ personal information
The European Commission wants to protect the privacy of European citizens and this Tuesday called on the social network TikTok to guarantee the protection of the data of its European users. More specifically, Brussels has demanded from the Chinese platform that there is “no doubt” that Europeans’ personal information is protected against possible “illegal” third country attempts to obtain it.
This has been confirmed by Community Executive Vice President Vera Jourova after meeting with TikTok Executive Director Shou Zi Chew. The meeting comes weeks after the United States banned the installation of this application on the devices of federal officials and Congressional representatives as part of the trade war between Washington and Beijing.
Jourova has assured that the European Union (EU) is “counting” on the commitment of the Chinese company to “make an extra effort to respect European laws and gain the trust of European regulators”, he said in reference to the new Services Law Digital, making the platforms responsible for the content they provide and asking for greater protection from users. That was the main reason for the visit of the TikTok representative to Brussels, who has had a round of contacts with the Commissioners for Competition, Margrethe Vestager, and Justice, Didier Reynders. The law, which comes into force this year, aims to combat hate speech, provide greater protection for minors and ensure the security of the personal data of users of digital platforms.
TikTok joined the Code against Disinformation as part of the European measures against Russian propaganda campaigns. In this context, the Chinese social network has acknowledged that there are actors from “non-European” states who try to manipulate the content distributed on the platform in order to spread hoaxes, but the director has defended that the company is making efforts to address this issue.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
